Crypto Borrowing Breaks All-Time High, but With Stronger Collateral This Time
Crypto-collateralized borrowing surged to a record $73.6 billion in the third quarter, marking the sector’s most levered quarter on record, yet the composition of that leverage looks significantly healthier than during the 2021–22 cycle.
According to Galaxy Research, the sharp rise was driven overwhelmingly by onchain lending, which now represents 66.9% of all crypto-collateralized debt, up from 48.6% at the previous peak four years ago.
DeFi lending alone jumped 55% to an all-time high of $41 billion, supported by points-driven user incentives and improved collateral types such as Pendle Principal Tokens.
Centralized lenders also saw a rebound as borrows grew 37% to $24.4 billion, though the market remains a third smaller than its…
